BIOGRAPHY

American actor Gary Lockwood has forged a lengthy film and television career distinguished by his work with legendary talents like Stanley Kubrick, Elia Kazan, and even Elvis Presley. The ruggedly handsome Van Nuys native, a former UCLA footballer and stunt double for Anthony Perkins, was fresh off a notable appearance in the Presley-starring juvenile delinquent drama "Wild in the Country" (1961) when he landed a supporting role in Kazan's Oscar-winning romance "Splendor in the Grass." Lockwood followed up with several high-profile TV roles, then teamed with Presley again in the 1963 musical caper "It Happened at the World's Fair." Within a year, Lockwood was starring in his own series on NBC, as Lt. Bill Tiberius Rice on "The Lieutenant"; the Marine corps drama was created by Norman Felton ("The Man from U.N.C.L.E.") and Gene Roddenberry, the visionary producer behind the landmark sci-fi series "Star Trek." "The Lieutenant" lasted only a season, but one indelible appearance on "Star Trek," portraying a Star Fleet commander driven mad by mysteriously endowed mental powers, earned Lockwood a place in science fiction history; that legacy was extended further by his role as the doomed Dr. Frank Poole in Kubrick's classic "2001: A Space Odyssey." Through the '70s and '80s, Lockwood continued to bring a sly, sturdy presence to a variety of TV roles on shows from "The Six Million Dollar Man" to "Hart to Hart" (opposite then-ex-wife Stefanie Powers), carving out a niche playing gruff men of authority.

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Gary Lockwood (born John Gary Yusolfsky on February 21, 1937 in Van Nuys, California) is an American actor who is probably best known for his role as astronaut Dr. Frank Poole in 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968).
A very familiar face to movie and television audiences for nearly fifty years, Lockwood was a movie stuntman prior to his film acting debut in an uncredited bit role in 1959's Warlock.
Lockwood's two TV series came early in his career and each lasted only one season. ABC's Hawaii-set Follow the Sun in 1961-1962. In his next series NBC's The Lieutenant (1963-1964), he had the title role of second lieutenant William Rice. The drama series about peacetime U.S. Marines. Despite moderately good reviews, The Lieutenant's Saturday night time slot opposite CBS's blockbuster Jackie Gleason's American Scene Magazine caused its cancellation after 29 episodes.
Lockwood's other notable television work includes playing Lt. Commander Gary Mitchell in "Where No Man Has Gone Before", (filmed as the second pilot, but broadcast as the third episode) of Star Trek. He also co-starred with Stefanie Powers, his wife at the time, in a memorable episode of Love, American Style as a newlywed who gets his mouth stuck around a doorknob.
Between 1959 and 2006, Gary Lockwood had roles in some 40 theatrical and made-for-TV features and made almost 80 TV guest appearances.